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Early History of the Pipe Organ


The "king of instruments" has a long history, one which can arguably be traced
to the concept of a collection of "fixed-pitched pipes blown by a single player
(such as the panpipes)" (Randel 583). The first examples of pipe organs with
the basic features of today can be traced to the third century B.C.E. in the
Greco-Roman arena; it is said to have been invented by Ktesibios of Alexander
and contained "a mechanism to supply air under pressure, a wind-chest to store
and distribute it, keys and valves to admit wind to the pipes, and one or more
graded sets of fixed-pitch pipes." (Randel 583) These early organs used water
as a means to supply air-pressure, hence the use of the terms hydraulic and
hydraulis.

Hydraulic organs were in use for several hundred years before the concept of
bellows, similar in concept and style to those of a blacksmith, came into use
with the organ. Numerous bellows were used to supply air to the wind-chest,
often being......

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Approximate Word Count: 1518
Approximate Pages: 7 (250 words per double-spaced page)

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